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Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

Hello, I'm in need of help! My 6 week old has been doing really great with nursing, until now. Lately she has been super fussy, gassy, and her spitting up has gotten out of control. I have not changed anything in my diet and am not sure what is going on. If it is due to too much milk supply, how can I slow it down so she isn't overwhelmed with too much too fast?

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

Try nursing in a reclined position or laying down. Try gettin the milk going, waiting until it stops squirting and then latch her on. Try feeding on the same side you ended with to start then switch sides if needed.

But...if she isn't bugged, spitting is a laundry problem, not a baby problem

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

with the PP. What signs of oversupply are you seeing? Spit-up is a common baby issue and it's quite possible to have a spitting baby and normal or even low supply. So you don't want to try to downsize your milk supply unless you are sure you have an oversupply problem.

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

I do switch sides of starting. After let down, my milk isn't "squirting", it's just running down very fast. Sometimes I don't notice until my hand is covered in milk. When I would be a little engorged in the morning, I would pump a little to relieve the feeling and so she wouldn't be overwhelmed with milk. I'm not entirely sure I have too much milk. After everything I've read, that's just the conclusion I have come to. When I'm really ready for her to nurse, she gulps a lot of air, pulls off so I burp her, then spits up a lot. She also bites down a lot during feeding and I'm thinking its because of a fast flow. The amount of spit up (sometimes she's vomiting) is huge right after she comes off the breast. Sometimes I don't even have time to put her on my shoulder to burp her.
If she is vomiting, should I be really concerned? I also plan on calling her doctor to ask.

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

hi kae.dowdy,
i agree with the PP's. what you are experiening does sound like a powerful let down reflex. I also had very strong milk ejection when my lo's were still infants. some times I needed to sit the baby in a upward position and I used to tell my breasts to ssslllloooowww dddooowwwnnn. It worked for me.

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

That totally sounds like over active letdown. It is a problem that baby usually outgrows as they get a bit bigger. As long as there is adequate wet and poopy diapers, baby is generally happy, and baby is not projectile vomiting, it's Ok.

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

My baby spewed spit up. Projectile vomit style spit up sometimes. If there is no sign of illness or discomfort, then I wouldn't be concerned.

Just try not to overdo it with the pump. Pumping can aggravate overactive letdown and bring on a nasty oversupply. It sounds like you're not pumping very much, but there are better ways to deal with a forceful letdown.

My son was biting/choking/screaming because of my super strong milk spray. Nursing reclined worked very well for me. I leaned back on a few pillows, put my baby on my chest, and let him latch. It took a lot of tweaking to find a position that worked really well for us, but it saved our nursing relationship once we did.

with all of this:

Originally Posted by @llli*aprilsmagic

Try nursing in a reclined position or laying down. Try gettin the milk going, waiting until it stops squirting and then latch her on. Try feeding on the same side you ended with to start then switch sides if needed.

But...if she isn't bugged, spitting is a laundry problem, not a baby problem

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

Originally Posted by @llli*aprilsmagic

That totally sounds like over active letdown. It is a problem that baby usually outgrows as they get a bit bigger. As long as there is adequate wet and poopy diapers, baby is generally happy, and baby is not projectile vomiting, it's Ok.

I have heard of doctors blaming mother's milk, so be careful.

Sounds like OALD with a touch of oversupply, maybe more than a touch. I'd avoid the pump right now. I know that means baby may suffer a bit in the morning when she is blasted with a firehose-like letdown, but in the long run the more you put up with full breasts the faster your supply will regulate to match baby's needs.

I am also that you want to be cautious about taking breastfeeding advice from your doc without getting second opinions from a LC or from LLL or some other reputable source. Most know very, very little about nursing, and for many the first instinct is to blame the one variable they can't control: mom's milk.

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

Thank you everyone for all the advice!!! It means a lot! I didn't mention that I am new to the forum and this is our second baby. With our first, breast feeding didn't go so well and I had to wean him at 4 weeks. So now, breast feeding is new to me now. I did pump a little this morning because I was super full and she spit up while on the breast. I really do notice it more if I pump a little before she eats, so I am going to quit pumping all together and see how she does. Her time on the breasts is quicker now, but I notice on the first one she is nursing more aggressive and it is no longer than 10 min, but when she is nursing on the second breast, she isn't as aggressive, but she goes for 15 to 20 min. Is this okay?

Re: Fussy, gassy, and spitting up

That sounds totally normal to me. She is hungriest on the first breast, so she nurses more aggressively. She is not as hungry by the time she gets to the second, so she takes her time and enjoys the rest of her meal. She may be nursing some for comfort toward the end.